The Good: After "forgetting" about our lawyer bill from last December for a few months, we got a follow up letter offering to consider it paid in full - at a discount of 30%. Hmmm. If I knew that not paying your bills for 5 months would result in a 30% reduction in what you owe I'd be paying late all the time. Then again, perhaps that's not the best strategy. In my defense, I wasn't sure the letter we got back in December was actually a bill. It didn't have a remit-to or due date. So, hey, why pay it if it's not due yet, right? Then it got buried on the computer desk. Yeah. But we'll pay it now. Honest. (Evil voice in head: but what if you wait another couple of months and they knock even more off? Muahahahaha!)
The Bad: It was inventory day. That's never a good thing. And I was totally crabby all afternoon, threatening my computer with death and my file folders with being thrown across my cube. It was not a pretty sight.
Which brings me to The Ugly: Carly peed all over one of the cat mats tonight. Of course I didn't realize this until I had picked her up, thereby drenching myself in cat pee. She had also managed to waltz all around the cat room with her wet paws. Fabulous. I put some pet odor carpet stuff down and vacuumed it up so hopefully the pee smell won't linger. Then it was bath time for Carly, which she LOVED. Not. Adam and I both got wet and scratched and now she's sulking up on top of the fridge. Well, see Carly? If you didn't refuse to pee in your damn litterbox you wouldn't get dunked in the sink. Duh.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Because sometimes we all need to see some cute cat pictures...
From the back:
From the front:
Adorable dangling paw:
Sunbathing:
Hmm, just noticed there are no Carly pictures. Wonder why that is? Oh, I know! Because she's a perpetually crabby kitty!
From the front:
Adorable dangling paw:
Sunbathing:
Hmm, just noticed there are no Carly pictures. Wonder why that is? Oh, I know! Because she's a perpetually crabby kitty!
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Slacker-age
I was going to post something on Thursday but then I got home and we went out to dinner and I completely forgot. Bad Martha.
Anyway, the week was a good one. I had IMA on Tuesday. It was a tour this month at the post office. I would have loved to go on it, but I didn't think it would be possible to go on the tour (that would inevitably run late) and still get everything organized over at the Hilton for dinner. I was right. The tour went to 6:15. Dinner was at 6:30. I got completely swamped but luckily I had prepared as much as I could for that. The dinner was great - a buffet, something different than our usual. I got a lot of good feedback about that. Too bad the venue nickels and dimes you to death with set-up fees and A/V charges. *sigh* That's definitely something we'll have to be talking about at our summer board meetings. We might have to hike up our dinner prices if people prefer a nicer meal/venue. One more meeting for the season left.
Wednesday was pretty non-descript. Thursday I was going to make a chicken-tomato pasta but Adam really wasn't into that. So we went to Bao Ju instead. Wonderful crab rangoon. Great food, atmosphere. Our server definitely wasn't Asian, but we weren't sure where he was from. I guessed somewhere in South/Central America while Adam though he had more of a Ukrainian/Eastern European accent. Anyway, a good meal and I'd definitely recommend it.
Friday was a good day. I was charged with the task of completing the tax books for all five plants this year. I was pretty much done with four of them and had just requested some information from the plant for the fifth. I then learned that they had already completed all but 7 schedules. Yipee! Unfortunately I'm still left with the tax inventory adjustment (argh, I hate that one so much!) but it's better than having to do them all. This makes this coming week much easier to handle. I was concerned I'd end up running out of time trying to finish all the tax stuff while prepping for another month-end. Whew.
This weekend was a wet one. It's rained a lot, but that's a good thing. We needed it. The grass is finally getting a nice green color. And the birds were out en force, driving the cats totally nuts. Even Carly got in hunting mode for a few minutes yesterday. Maybe the primal force of nature will draw the cats together. Ha. Not holding my breath.
We did a bunch of shopping both yesterday and today. We stopped at the new Panera Bread for lunch. I had a soup/sandwich combo. The soup was a little salty (which is pretty much the norm) and the bread for the sandwich was so dense it kind of sank like a rock in my stomach. Overall it was good, but I don't know that I'll be a regular customer. I don't really like bread in the first place, and Erbert and Gerbert's is still my number one sandwich place.
This afternoon Adam mopped the floor while I watched The Reader. I really liked this movie. It might be up there in my top picks from this year. I think The Visitor is still my favorite so far, but this one is close. So I'm up to 17 watched on my list. I know Adam's itching to see The Wrestler so I'll probably try and swap it out tomorrow on my way home from bells.
Nothing much on the docket for this week. Inventory on Thursday to start another month-end. This one should be interesting. All the key users will be out in training so I'm pretty much on my own. I'm also responsible for financials this month for the North plant. I haven't really been involved in financials since I got moved to North from Corporate back in May of 2006 so it should be a different experience.
Anyway, the week was a good one. I had IMA on Tuesday. It was a tour this month at the post office. I would have loved to go on it, but I didn't think it would be possible to go on the tour (that would inevitably run late) and still get everything organized over at the Hilton for dinner. I was right. The tour went to 6:15. Dinner was at 6:30. I got completely swamped but luckily I had prepared as much as I could for that. The dinner was great - a buffet, something different than our usual. I got a lot of good feedback about that. Too bad the venue nickels and dimes you to death with set-up fees and A/V charges. *sigh* That's definitely something we'll have to be talking about at our summer board meetings. We might have to hike up our dinner prices if people prefer a nicer meal/venue. One more meeting for the season left.
Wednesday was pretty non-descript. Thursday I was going to make a chicken-tomato pasta but Adam really wasn't into that. So we went to Bao Ju instead. Wonderful crab rangoon. Great food, atmosphere. Our server definitely wasn't Asian, but we weren't sure where he was from. I guessed somewhere in South/Central America while Adam though he had more of a Ukrainian/Eastern European accent. Anyway, a good meal and I'd definitely recommend it.
Friday was a good day. I was charged with the task of completing the tax books for all five plants this year. I was pretty much done with four of them and had just requested some information from the plant for the fifth. I then learned that they had already completed all but 7 schedules. Yipee! Unfortunately I'm still left with the tax inventory adjustment (argh, I hate that one so much!) but it's better than having to do them all. This makes this coming week much easier to handle. I was concerned I'd end up running out of time trying to finish all the tax stuff while prepping for another month-end. Whew.
This weekend was a wet one. It's rained a lot, but that's a good thing. We needed it. The grass is finally getting a nice green color. And the birds were out en force, driving the cats totally nuts. Even Carly got in hunting mode for a few minutes yesterday. Maybe the primal force of nature will draw the cats together. Ha. Not holding my breath.
We did a bunch of shopping both yesterday and today. We stopped at the new Panera Bread for lunch. I had a soup/sandwich combo. The soup was a little salty (which is pretty much the norm) and the bread for the sandwich was so dense it kind of sank like a rock in my stomach. Overall it was good, but I don't know that I'll be a regular customer. I don't really like bread in the first place, and Erbert and Gerbert's is still my number one sandwich place.
This afternoon Adam mopped the floor while I watched The Reader. I really liked this movie. It might be up there in my top picks from this year. I think The Visitor is still my favorite so far, but this one is close. So I'm up to 17 watched on my list. I know Adam's itching to see The Wrestler so I'll probably try and swap it out tomorrow on my way home from bells.
Nothing much on the docket for this week. Inventory on Thursday to start another month-end. This one should be interesting. All the key users will be out in training so I'm pretty much on my own. I'm also responsible for financials this month for the North plant. I haven't really been involved in financials since I got moved to North from Corporate back in May of 2006 so it should be a different experience.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Seriously. I have no title. Really. Nothing.
I should just resign myself to the fact that I suck at this.
Anywho, Easter was ok. Cheryl called on Saturday to invite us down there for lunch after my dad apparently read my previous post and saw we weren't doing anything. Adam planned a day of golf and ribs so we opted out. Too bad since they were going to be playing games and such. Adam's family is not into games too much. They play cards, but nothing like the wild and crazy times we had in my family. It could get downright violent when we played Pit. Anyway, I went to church to play bells. Spent the afternoon alternating between watching golf in the living room and doing other things around the house. Dinner was great.
The week was nothing too interesting. I didn't have bell practice on Monday so we did some shopping and went out to dinner instead. Friday I was up at 4am and picked up by 5 to get to Rockford for the IMA regional leadership training seminar. It was a good day. Good speakers, a great breakout session. It was fun to meet and speak with reps from other chapters. It's discouraging that we all seem to have the same declining attendance problem, but was good to brainstorm with a larger group. I got back home later than I anticipated and was ready for bed almost immediately.
Yesterday we did our usual shopping and then caught an early movie, Observe and Report. Not your usual Seth Rogan comedy. Not really too much a comedy at all actually. Yes, there are definitely some funny parts, but in the end it just makes you uncomfortable in some respect about police and gun control. After stopping at Sam's we came back home and caught up on some DVR shows. Dinner. Bed.
This morning we watched Slumdog Millionaire. I had talked with some ladies at the conference on Friday about it so I was looking forward to seeing it. That said, I'm not sure it really should have won all those awards. I haven't seen all the movies on the list yet, but I don't know that this would be my favorite. It has a good plot, good acting, interesting music. I don't know. Just something off for me. But it was a good movie. I guess that's what matters. The fact that the climax involved Dumas (one of my favorites - I even read The Three Muskateers in French!) was kind of a bonus as well. (Hmm, hopefully that's not a spoiler. Wasn't meant to be.)
After that we went shopping again. This time for clothes. JC Penney had some good sales and we also managed to hit their family and friends 20% off event day as well. Sweet. I found some shirts and Adam discovered they have a big and tall section. We also stopped at Catherine's (a store) and I found a dress for Catherine's (the roommate) wedding. The rest of the afternoon was spent zonked in front of the TV. Adam made another good dinner and now I'm catching up online. A little. Or at least trying to.
Adam also reminded me that I forgot to post a picture of the shed and new trees out back:
A bit of irony this weekend on that subject. The shed in the neighbor's yard that we got the trees to block? They knocked it down. Ha.
Also spotted this weekend?
A cute bunny! Let me tell you, the cats are loving spring!
Anywho, Easter was ok. Cheryl called on Saturday to invite us down there for lunch after my dad apparently read my previous post and saw we weren't doing anything. Adam planned a day of golf and ribs so we opted out. Too bad since they were going to be playing games and such. Adam's family is not into games too much. They play cards, but nothing like the wild and crazy times we had in my family. It could get downright violent when we played Pit. Anyway, I went to church to play bells. Spent the afternoon alternating between watching golf in the living room and doing other things around the house. Dinner was great.
The week was nothing too interesting. I didn't have bell practice on Monday so we did some shopping and went out to dinner instead. Friday I was up at 4am and picked up by 5 to get to Rockford for the IMA regional leadership training seminar. It was a good day. Good speakers, a great breakout session. It was fun to meet and speak with reps from other chapters. It's discouraging that we all seem to have the same declining attendance problem, but was good to brainstorm with a larger group. I got back home later than I anticipated and was ready for bed almost immediately.
Yesterday we did our usual shopping and then caught an early movie, Observe and Report. Not your usual Seth Rogan comedy. Not really too much a comedy at all actually. Yes, there are definitely some funny parts, but in the end it just makes you uncomfortable in some respect about police and gun control. After stopping at Sam's we came back home and caught up on some DVR shows. Dinner. Bed.
This morning we watched Slumdog Millionaire. I had talked with some ladies at the conference on Friday about it so I was looking forward to seeing it. That said, I'm not sure it really should have won all those awards. I haven't seen all the movies on the list yet, but I don't know that this would be my favorite. It has a good plot, good acting, interesting music. I don't know. Just something off for me. But it was a good movie. I guess that's what matters. The fact that the climax involved Dumas (one of my favorites - I even read The Three Muskateers in French!) was kind of a bonus as well. (Hmm, hopefully that's not a spoiler. Wasn't meant to be.)
After that we went shopping again. This time for clothes. JC Penney had some good sales and we also managed to hit their family and friends 20% off event day as well. Sweet. I found some shirts and Adam discovered they have a big and tall section. We also stopped at Catherine's (a store) and I found a dress for Catherine's (the roommate) wedding. The rest of the afternoon was spent zonked in front of the TV. Adam made another good dinner and now I'm catching up online. A little. Or at least trying to.
Adam also reminded me that I forgot to post a picture of the shed and new trees out back:
A bit of irony this weekend on that subject. The shed in the neighbor's yard that we got the trees to block? They knocked it down. Ha.
Also spotted this weekend?
A cute bunny! Let me tell you, the cats are loving spring!
Friday, April 10, 2009
Another Two Week Long Void
Good grief. Sometimes I get so far behind I wonder if it’s even worth backtracking to catch up. But here’s the Cliff Notes version of the past two weeks…
Saturday the 28th we went down to Sheboygan for their Sipping on the Shores wine and beer tasting. I’d never been to Blue Harbor OR a beer/wine tasting so I really didn’t know what to expect. I knew it was going to be crowded. My dad and Cheryl went last year and had warned us. It was crowded. And hot. And mostly beer. But we braved the insanity and stopped at the vendors we wanted to try. We discovered a new cranberry wine and a nice Riesling. We had some wonderful spinach dip from one of the local restaurants. We bought a few bottles on the way out and then we escaped. We lasted just over an hour. We’re not meant for crowds. I was surprised that it was Adam who instigated our bailing. It’s usually me who cracks first. But this left us with some time to kill before dinner. We drove to one of the local breweries (well, if you consider Cedarburg local) and Adam picked up a case of blonde root beer that they hadn’t been selling on site. We stopped at the Victorian Chocolate Shoppe and got some truffles (yum!) We then bummed around the bar inside Brisco County until everyone else showed up. They were running late (of course) but once everyone arrived it was a nice time. Unfortunately the weather turned ugly and we bailed on the second part of the evening in an effort to avoid the worst part of the snowstorm. It was pretty crappy around Fond du Lac but we made it home in one piece. Fed the hungry cats and went to bed.
Sunday Adam made another great dinner. The rest of that week is pretty much a blur. Yay for inventory.
Last weekend Adam took down the ugly/dying trees in the backyard. His dad came over on Saturday and they rented the stump grinder again. Then they put together the shed we bought to get some of the stuff out of the garage. I spent the weekend shopping, cleaning, and sleeping. I started to get a cold on Friday. Monday was miserable. I stayed home on Tuesday. I feel much better now.
I got a haircut yesterday. Adam planted three trees by the shed. Not sure what the weekend holds yet.
Movie-wise, I watched Milk on Sunday while Adam was with Anton and David watching Wrestlemania. Interesting movie, but I wonder why it took so long to get made? It’s certainly relevant. Zack and Miri was in there somewhere. Your typical fluff, but I still liked it. I watched A Beautiful Mind again when Adam was out on Saturday night. I always forget how good that movie is until I watch it again. We watched Role Models last night. Another somewhat silly movie, but fun.
This weekend is Easter. The bells play on Sunday but that’s really about all we’ve got going on. Adam’s family isn’t doing anything. My family isn’t doing anything. And we aren’t doing anything. I’ve eaten enough chocolate already though. I love chocolate bunnies. Mmm.
We just got the invite for Catherine and Tony's wedding so we're looking forward to that. Things are falling into place for our August trip so that's good as well. We finalized the date of our summer cookout so if you're in the area on June 20th, stop by for a burger. Official invites will be emailed or posted soon.
That's about all for now. I need to go blow my nose again. It's ridiculous how much snot can be up there. The human body is baffling.
Saturday the 28th we went down to Sheboygan for their Sipping on the Shores wine and beer tasting. I’d never been to Blue Harbor OR a beer/wine tasting so I really didn’t know what to expect. I knew it was going to be crowded. My dad and Cheryl went last year and had warned us. It was crowded. And hot. And mostly beer. But we braved the insanity and stopped at the vendors we wanted to try. We discovered a new cranberry wine and a nice Riesling. We had some wonderful spinach dip from one of the local restaurants. We bought a few bottles on the way out and then we escaped. We lasted just over an hour. We’re not meant for crowds. I was surprised that it was Adam who instigated our bailing. It’s usually me who cracks first. But this left us with some time to kill before dinner. We drove to one of the local breweries (well, if you consider Cedarburg local) and Adam picked up a case of blonde root beer that they hadn’t been selling on site. We stopped at the Victorian Chocolate Shoppe and got some truffles (yum!) We then bummed around the bar inside Brisco County until everyone else showed up. They were running late (of course) but once everyone arrived it was a nice time. Unfortunately the weather turned ugly and we bailed on the second part of the evening in an effort to avoid the worst part of the snowstorm. It was pretty crappy around Fond du Lac but we made it home in one piece. Fed the hungry cats and went to bed.
Sunday Adam made another great dinner. The rest of that week is pretty much a blur. Yay for inventory.
Last weekend Adam took down the ugly/dying trees in the backyard. His dad came over on Saturday and they rented the stump grinder again. Then they put together the shed we bought to get some of the stuff out of the garage. I spent the weekend shopping, cleaning, and sleeping. I started to get a cold on Friday. Monday was miserable. I stayed home on Tuesday. I feel much better now.
I got a haircut yesterday. Adam planted three trees by the shed. Not sure what the weekend holds yet.
Movie-wise, I watched Milk on Sunday while Adam was with Anton and David watching Wrestlemania. Interesting movie, but I wonder why it took so long to get made? It’s certainly relevant. Zack and Miri was in there somewhere. Your typical fluff, but I still liked it. I watched A Beautiful Mind again when Adam was out on Saturday night. I always forget how good that movie is until I watch it again. We watched Role Models last night. Another somewhat silly movie, but fun.
This weekend is Easter. The bells play on Sunday but that’s really about all we’ve got going on. Adam’s family isn’t doing anything. My family isn’t doing anything. And we aren’t doing anything. I’ve eaten enough chocolate already though. I love chocolate bunnies. Mmm.
We just got the invite for Catherine and Tony's wedding so we're looking forward to that. Things are falling into place for our August trip so that's good as well. We finalized the date of our summer cookout so if you're in the area on June 20th, stop by for a burger. Official invites will be emailed or posted soon.
That's about all for now. I need to go blow my nose again. It's ridiculous how much snot can be up there. The human body is baffling.
Sunday, April 05, 2009
When the Wait is Over...
We didn't have bell rehearsal last week as we were going to be missing at least three people and it didn't seem worthwhile to get everyone else together with so many holes. Nancy called on Friday to give a Julie update. She had been moved to the hospice unit, was on morphine and oxygen and largely unresponsive. They were talking hours, days.
She died this morning.
While not unexpected, it's still not something you want to hear. She was one of the founding members of the bell choir. It defined her as much as she defined it. I only stood next to her for a few months but I could see how she was liked by so many. She was full of life. She loved her work and had so many stories about the kids she taught in her classes.
But now we'll be preparing for a funeral. It's a little frightening. I've been exceedingly lucky in life and have only been to one funeral. We anticipate we'll be ringing, but we'll have to see.
But for now, I prefer to remember her this way, at our 25th anniversary concert last year. She's next to me, second from the right.
She died this morning.
While not unexpected, it's still not something you want to hear. She was one of the founding members of the bell choir. It defined her as much as she defined it. I only stood next to her for a few months but I could see how she was liked by so many. She was full of life. She loved her work and had so many stories about the kids she taught in her classes.
But now we'll be preparing for a funeral. It's a little frightening. I've been exceedingly lucky in life and have only been to one funeral. We anticipate we'll be ringing, but we'll have to see.
But for now, I prefer to remember her this way, at our 25th anniversary concert last year. She's next to me, second from the right.
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